A Long Time Ago
by VerySpecialSnowflake
Summary: This is a semi-crossover oneshot I wrote while in anticipation for the Force Awakens. The setting is in Tale Of Two Stans, and sometime around Christmas. This is young Stanley, by the way.
Cold air bit the exposed skin Stanley had. His coat was thinner than he wanted to admit, and wearing it every day wasn't helping. His mullet was fending off some of it, but eventually the wind found its way under the hair. The only thing warming his freezing body was the newly lit cigarette wearing away at the corner of his lip, tucked neatly between his teeth. He knew smoking was bad for him; but it was the only way to stay calm. The leather bag slung over his shoulder felt as if it were about to rip his arm out of the socket.

He walked past shop windows filled with red and green Christmas lights. A faint scent of pastries complimented the air and the all too familiar drone of holiday music was being carried on the air. Was it really Christmas again? It seemed like only yesterday the Halloween junk was being put up in shops. A trail of cigarette smoke trailed past him and disappearing as he sighed. It had been seven years since he spent Christmas under a welcome roof, with a family.

His mind had begun to drift to his memories at Christmas as a child. The Pines family didn't have much- not even a tree to put up. Presents were a luxury, and they appreciated what they had. The best part of the day was the aftermath, playing with his brother. He had been smiling at the thought of Christmas morning, but the last one made him frown. He knew his thoughts would drift to the memory of Ford. Why did he let it?

Stanley's thoughts were interrupted when he noticed he had stopped at a movie poster. It was an impressive display, but quite unassuming to the newly disheartened Stanley. He wasn't sure what to think of it- he'd never seen anything like it. There was a large helmet figure in the middle of it, which brought together a bigger picture. There were several men and women with bright colored swords and guns, their weapons appearing to be futuristic. Everyone he saw (with the exception of the helmet figure) was clad in a white outfit of some sort. Two droids sat unnoticed at the bottom of the action, one tall and humanoid and the other one short and more droid- like. He was even more confused by the chaotic scene when he read the name- Star Wars.

The intrigue was getting stronger the more he dwelled on it. Curiosity took hold of him and he decided to go see the movie. With the little money occupying his pocket, he was able to cover the cost of the movie. He wondered if he spent his money well, or if he should've just held on to it until he found work again.

But nonetheless Stanley was incredibly curious. He took his seat in the theater, watching as people came into the theater, slowly and sporadically. Eventually, every seat was filled and the movie began.

He was rather confused by its plot, with the mentions of Anakin Skywalker, but Anakin never making an appearance onscreen. Everything seemed to be decided before these movies were made, and there wasn't a way for the audience to know about those decisions. Stanley relaxed for once and his thoughts drifted to Ford again. He wondered if Ford would've liked this movie. With every memory he had of his brother's personality he had, he tried to imagine what Ford's reaction to the movie would be. He'd probably explain how lightsabers were possible, or how the Force is very similar to magnetism. Overall, Ford would've liked it, according to Stanley.

As for Stan, he enjoyed the action scenes and even some relaxed scenes, where they were just talking. He found Chewbacca to be his favorite character, right next to Han Solo. He wasn't attracted to Leia, unlike the other men in the theater. He estimated that Ford would have had Yoda as his favorite character or maybe R2-D2. Much later in life he would meet someone with the spitting image of C3PO.

Before Stanley was aware of it, the movie was over. He stood up as the intense and orchestral music played the credits. Stanley pushed the door he came in back out, and vanished into the snow again.

Epilogue

Stan hadn't seen Star Wars since that one day in the 70's. He had come to hold deep veneration for the series, even if he'd never known the second or third one. He was also clueless about the prequels. Then one day, as the old man reclined on his chair, the spitting image of C3PO approached him- none other than his great nephew, Dipper Pines. The 12 year old held a DVD in his hands. Its cover was all too familiar to him.

"Grunkle Stan, guess what I found at the store?"

"Star Wars...," he responded tiredly, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

"Did you see this movie when it first came out?"

"Uh, yeah. I saw it."

"Well, did you like it?"

"Eh, take it or leave it, ya know? You wanna watch it tonight? I bet your sister would like it."

The boy gasped. "I bet she would. Mabel!" He started up the stairs, leaving Stan alone again. He couldn't let Dipper know about his connection to the series out of fear of going soft.

Dipper returned, this time with Mabel. She was just as eager as he was to see this movie. The twins made all preparation necessary to watch it and eventually settled in for what would be an adventure to them. As for Stan, he was just seeing the movie again, like he did that day in the 70's


End file.
